Winter 2012 · Down to Earth - Canadian Organic Growers

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Cheers to our Library! Dorothy Stephens D id you know that Canadian Organic Growers-Ottawa has an extensive library? Your membership in COG-Ottawa entitles you to have access to a wonderful collection of books, reports, government publications and periodicals. There are even tapes from the yearly conferences in Guelph ranging from 1998 to 2004. Nowhere else in the region will you find such an insightful stockpile of books on organics. There are instructional books on all aspects of caring for plants, trees, crops and animals. Some of my favourite thought-provoking publications include the following: • Shattering: Food, Politics and the Loss of Genetic Diversity • Seeds of Change: The growing movement to restore biodiversity • Farmageddon: The culture of biotechnology When it comes to gardening, I also have preferences: • Perennials for Every Purpose • New Organic Gardener The best part is that all of these books are yours to read and are available in our library. If you are interested, please access the library book list at: www.cog.ca/library. After you have made your choices, e-mail or fax your requests to the library and then receive the books by mail, with postage paid by COG-Ottawa both ways. Email: library@cog.ca Fax: 613-236-0743 Mail: COG Library, 39 MacArthur Avenue, Ottawa, ON K1L 8L7 Celebrating Our 10th Anniversary INVESTORS WANTED 3 Strong Growth 3 Solid Performance 3 Stable Returns 3 Community Leader 2 · Down to Earth · Winter 2012 Call Tom Manley at 1-877-984-0480 www.homesteadorganics.ca What the ‘Lorgavore?’ If you were on Jeopardy! and were asked about ‘lorgavore,’ what would you say? You might know that the similar sounding “locavore” has been used for years to describe people who support the local food scene. However, you might not know what, or who, a ‘lorgavore’ is. Luckily for us, our own Jasen Brousseau is the man responsible for developing the new term which is meant to draw a clear difference between locally grown non-organic food and locally grown organic food. We decided to let Jasen describe his new term: “The term ‘lorgavore’ originated out of an attempt to fill a void within the food movement and raise the bar in terms of what a healthy food system looks like. There are many local food organizations and many organic food organizations all working towards improving the health and sovereignty of our food system. The mistake is often made to try and choose between either local or organic as the epitome of a healthy food system. I do not believe that either one of them alone is the epitome of a healthy food system, but rather both together. A non-local organic food system still carries the environmental impacts of transportation and the economic impacts of not supporting local economies and farmers. Similarly, a local non-organic food system has the extremely damaging impacts of pesticides, chemically-laced food, and many other environmentally unfriendly practices. As a result, a ‘lorgavore’ is a person who tries to eat only locally and organically produced foods and who supports a local and organic food system. The goal of the term is to bridge the gap between the local and organic food movements and set a new standard for a healthy, sustainable, people-controlled food system.” Jasen Brousseau, Co-Chair, COG-Ottawa Organic Gardening Workshop Series 2012 This “how to” series of organic gardening workshops is offered annually at the Sandy Hill Community Centre with organic gardening gurus Pat Lucey and George Bushell. The dates are Wednesdays, April 4, 11, 18, 25 from 7-9 pm. Please let people who might be interested know about this. Notice of Registration opening will be on the COG-Ottawa website: www.cog.ca/ottawa, or call David Townson at 613 244 4000 Ext 2; ottawachapter@cog.ca.
Fall Reflections 2011 Matthew Irving & Margaret Tourond-Townson About 50 people came out to the Sandy Hill Community Centre to take part in “Fall Reflections,” COG-Ottawa’s annual general meeting on Sunday December 4. Many came to listen to keynote speaker Stuart Collins from Bryson Farms. Collins discussed how organic farmers should become Certified Organic to differentiate themselves from conventional farmers. “Being able to prove that you are Certified Organic is the answer,” said Collins. “Having something that shows that your organic produce is genuine is what allows consumers to separate you from the vendor at the market with the little homemade sign that says ‘organic’ scribbled across it in magic marker.” But as Collins noted, organic farming is about more than just certification, it is about having a moral commitment to growing responsible food and rejecting the quick fix solution of chemical pesticides and herbicides. Collins finished his presentation by speaking about the difference between local and organic. “Organic farmers are getting buried in local markets,” said Collins. “We are losing the war by coddling conventional farmers at local markets” Next, our chair, Margaret Tourond-Townson took the stage to provide an overview of COG-Ottawa’s performance in 2011. The key points from her presentation are listed below. The full report is available at www.cog.ca/chapters/ottawa New National Executive Director at COG – Laura Telford has moved on to new opportunities and has now been replaced by Beth McMahon. McMahon comes to COG with experience as Executive Director of Atlantic Canada Organic Regional Network (ACORN). Beth sent greetings to COG- Ottawa in a pre-taped video. Cog National has decided to retain all membership fees for the year. However, we encourage you to join COG and/or renew your memberships. We rely on COG National for support in many areas. Eco-Farm Day, the Organic Gardening Workshops & the Summer Organic Garden Tours were all successes thanks to the many volunteers who made them possible. The events drew crowds ranging from 50 people at the Garden Tour in Merrickville to more than 300 registered attendees at Eco-Farm Day. Growing Up Organic has continued its fantastic work in introducing students to the world of organic growing and getting them involved with hands-on growing. The program has been one of the year’s biggest success stories as it has increased to 22 school gardens with 6 new gardens planned for the future. Growing Older Organic is a new project that is currently in the planning stages. It will kick-off next spring with an effort to build raised organic garden beds behind a few retirements’ residences as part of a pilot project. Feast of Fields took place on Sunday, September 11 under beautiful sunny skies at the Canada Agriculture Museum with 20 farmer-chef teams cooking up a storm. Aboriginal drumming greeted guests as they entered the beautiful site from 11:30AM ready for the opening ceremonies in which we remembered the victims of 9/11. The wonderful organic food was the main attraction and this year wine and beer were available for sale which was appreciated by many! Otesha Project performed “A Reason to Dream” with a message about the value of organic food and sustainable living. A silent auction, music, games and activities for the children and shopping completed the scene. COG-Ottawa agrees with the feedback which was nearly unanimous that Feast of Fields 2011 was a huge success. Organic Week is a nationwide campaign to raise awareness about the benefits of eating organically. In Ottawa, COG-Ottawa teamed-up with eight health food stores to disperse promotional material to customers. We also put organic items on the menus of four restaurants, had a barbeque on an organic farm and promoted Organic Week in three farmers’ markets. The Treasurer, Gary Weinhold presented • The balance sheet for COG-Ottawa December 4, 2011. STEERING COMMITTEE COG-OTTAWA 2012 CO-CHAIR: Susan Preston CO-CHAIR: Jasen Brousseau VICE CHAIR: Margaret Tourond-Townson TREASURER: Gary Weinhold MEMBERSHIP: Dick Coote SECRETARY: David Townson ECO FARM DAY REP: Arn Snyder MEMBERS-AT-LARGE: Lloyd Strachan Jennie Videto Doug MacLean Alina Cotovanu • Profit & loss statement for 2011 for COG-Ottawa with income & expenses • The 2012 budget for COG-Ottawa which assumes membership fees are being retained by COG National. COG-Ottawa held elections and the following slate of officers were voted to serve for 2012: Co-Chair: Susan Preston; Co-Chair: Jason Brousseau; Vice Chair: Margaret Tourond-Townson; Treasurer: Gary Weinhold; Membership: Dick Coote; Secretary: David Townson; Members-atlarge: Jennie Videto, Arn Snyder (Eco Farm Day), Lloyd Strachan, Doug MacLean Winter 2012 · Down to Earth · 3
Page 1: Canadian Organic Growers OTTAWA REG
Page 5 and 6: Eco Farm Day Tom Manley, Chair Lisa
Page 7: Free Author Reading and Discussion

Winter 2012 · Down to Earth - Canadian Organic Growers

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